Nevrospastos
by Aetheling
Summary: Weeks have passed since the Battle of Beacon, and Teams JNPR and RWBY face their own struggles within and without. But even as Jaune, Ren, and Nora struggle with their loss, an unbound friend is on the way to help.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hello, and welcome to my fic, thanks for giving it a try! First and foremost, I'd like to thank redditors PUNished_Venom_Yang and IMayFallAgain, who have helped create and shape this story; I may be writing it, but this is their story, too. Secondly, I'm afraid I cannot make any promises on a release schedule for this story; my other ongoing fic had priority, and even that does not have a set schedule. I know I dislike vague update times as a reader, but I'd rather just tell y'all now than disappoint later on. FInally, I'll go into some detail of the story in the post, so please bare with me.

Thank you for reading, and please enjoy chapter one!

* * *

…

…Thought. Thought, thinking. That was what she was doing, she was thinking.

Did she do that before? She thought she had. It was good to be thinking again, but could she do more?

Motion: could she move? She felt stretching and contracting, pieces moving. Arms, and legs, that's what they were called. They ended in feet and hands – no, in hands and feet. A neck, with a… head? A head, and hair on it. She had those, she could move them.

They were her body.

Had she always had a body?

There was more: sensations. She could feel rough ground beneath herself, see the darkened walls and ceiling, hear the creaking stone and whining wood. And she could feel _something_. One way, and another, she could feel _somethings_ that pushed and pulled her, tugging at her soul.

Oh, she had a soul. She hadn't noticed that before.

She moved arms and legs, hand and feet, and lifted herself from the ground. She had been on her back in a great, dilapidated room. Wood and cloth and stone lay smashed and strewn across it, a large piece of wood hanging by a hole. No, a door hung from its hinges in the frame.

She could feel those somethings pulling on her soul: one was elsewhere, but another was far through that door. She did not know who she was, or where, or why she was here, or even when.

Oh, when. The concept of time, neat.

She didn't know these things, but she knew she _had_ to reach those sensed… beacons? She didn't know why, but she had to go to them.

With a hesitant step, she moved for the exit, to see what awaited her.

* * *

' _Thrust_. _'_

His sword rammed into the Beowolf easily, the creature bending over the wound to better reach him.

' _Withdraw, horizontal cut, bring shield up.'_

He stepped back before the Grimm could grab hold, and his returning strike drove the creature down. His shield knocked the dissipating monster aside, and he braced himself for the oncoming Boarbatusk.

' _Push off with shield, downward chop.'_

He put his weight behind the steel and the spinning beast ground to a halt. He shoved forward with a step, pushing the creature off of him, before slamming Crocea Mors down between its bony ridges.

' _Step back, reset'._

He fell into the defensive stance, eyes searching out more threats, but the Grimm were defeated. Ren and Nora had backed up to him, thinking for some reason their leader could cover them, while Team CFVY was already moving to replace his team. Yatsuhashi stood sentinel by the room's forward exit, while Coco covered the rear.

"Alright you guys, we'll take it from here!" She was always so damn cocky, Coco. They'd spent the last four hours clearing Grimm out of this block, but now CFVY would just waltz in and finish the job? He wanted to tell her to go bother some other team, but he knew that was just his mood talking. He knew JNPR - JNR - was due to leave for the safe zone again.

So Jaune bit down on his tongue, sheathed his sword, and passed Coco by.

"At this rate, we'll be making a move on Beacon in no time!" Nora confidently cheered behind him. "I mean, we covered a block just on our own; Miss Goodwitch can probably clear one in half an hour."

' _What's the point in reclaiming a burnt-out piece of the residential district at all? Why don't we take back Beacon_ _ **now?**_ _There's nothing worth having in this part of town!'_ He wanted to scream the idiocy of the whole thing at anyone they saw on their way to the extract point.

A calmer part of his mind was already countering him, though. ' _It secures this side of the river for supply movements, allows salvage and maintenance crews to restore Vale's infrastructure, and gives a visible sign the Grimm are being dealt with. A full-scale assault is needed to retake Beacon, and they can't move everyone by air for that.'_

"I don't know about that, but I imagine this neighborhood will be in the safe zone before the week is up." Ren answered Nora with that same calmness he always had. Well, almost always. "I, at least, am looking forward to some rest."

"Some sleep would be pretty great." He sorrowfully agreed. He already knew he wouldn't sleep; the nightmares would wake him up, or the expectation of them would keep him from falling asleep. He'd been running on fumes, and they all knew it.

"Let's swing by a medic, though! I want to make sure this burn'll be fine!" Nora wasn't really burned, she just wanted him to see a medic about his sleep troubles.

' _It's a waste of time,'_ he inwardly groused. ' _The medics have actual problems to deal with, they have no time for my nightmares. There are people out there who are hurt! People who are dy-'_

" _I'm sorry." A metal coffin, rattling as it flew through the air. He could faintly hear her crying._

"Jaune!" He snapped back to himself, Ren shaking his shoulder. Jaune pulled Ren's hand away, not making eye contact.

"Sorry, I'm back." He didn't need to see Ren's worrying face, didn't need _another_ reminder that he'd screwed up. "Let's just… get back to the tent, alright?" He started moving again, practically running to stay ahead of his friend's concerned gazes.

He didn't deserve their pity, their trust. This was his fault, after all.

* * *

She was in a ruin, but she thought she recognized what it had been before. Not the name, she didn't even remember her own name, but she knew she liked it here. It felt like home, or home away from home.

Wait, did she just think she had a name? Yes, she had! She had a name, maybe that's what she would find at that distant place?

The idea of such a wonderful thing drove her forward even faster, her feet scuffing and scraping on the shattered rock of courtyard and road. Strange, shadowy creatures walked those same roads, though. Black fur, white bone, and red eyes.

' _They're called Grimm_.' The thought resonated in her mind, and she felt giddy excitement bubble up, recalling another piece of knowledge, a piece of herself.

The Grimm were supposed to be dangerous, she knew, but they paid her no mind. She supposed that was good, since she had no idea what to do if they _did_ pay her mind. Run? Fight? Did she even know how to fight? They were so large: surely, she would stand no chance?

She walked down roads and scampered over rubble, she moved for hours. The sun had passed its zenith when she first stepped under it, and she had taken great pride in remembering its name. But now, that golden disk was turning red, heading for the horizon. She walked towards it, and the beacon that lay somewhere along it.

Her feet carried her to a cliff, a sheer edge overlooking a great expanse of stone. A…city? Yes, that was a city! It was a city, and the beacon she felt pulling at her was inside it! Her eyes swept along the ridge, looking for a way down it. There was none.

She stepped off, and began to fall.

* * *

The Students' Barracks were a series of military tents, cordoned off in a small plaza on the edge of Vale's safe zone. Looking around, you'd never guess several hundred people were living here. Jaune couldn't see anyone beyond his team out of the tents at the moment, and even inside their tent shared with four other teams, no one was in the common space. Ren moved to the stove, getting water for their dinner of rice and beans.

The three of them ate inside their little segment, the thick curtains muffling outside noise and offering a hint of privacy. Nora was chattering about something, and he put on a small smile for their benefit, but he wasn't really listening. He was going through the motions of hearing the story, pretending the simple meal Ren had made for them didn't taste like ash to him, acting like he'd lie down and not stare at the canvas until exhaustion pulled him into nightmares.

Ren and Nora were good people, they were his friends: they didn't need him dragging them down.

While Nora collected their dishes, Jaune laid down in bed, pulling out his scroll to try and convince his friends he was actually doing something, instead of just staring at a picture of her.

…

He was staring at the canvas roof, as usual. He could hear Nora snoring, and Ren's steady breath, and muffled noises from outside. They weren't keeping him up. He just couldn't sleep. So, he just lay there, staring at the ceiling.

There was a rustling noise in their segment, where no one should have been. Jaune lifted himself onto his elbows and locked up.

Pyrrha was there.

She was sitting on the edge of his bed, smiling down at him, emerald eyes bright in the dark. He pushed himself further up, to touch her, and she stretched her hands out to him. Her hands held his face as they kissed again. Her lips were fever hot, and tasted like apple. He wrapped his arms around her, to pull her close, to never let go.

Her lips began to cool, and she pulled away from him. He felt something wet on his lips and wiped at them. Blood? He looked back up, and she had changed.

A broken arrow jutted from her chest, her skin was ash white, and blood seeped from her lips. She was still smiling at him. She leaned back towards him, he couldn't move. She brought her lips to his ear, and whispered to him.

" _You couldn't save me."_

His eyes fired open, and Jaune stared at the canvas.

' _Just another nightmare, Jaune. It was just another nightmare.'_ His heart was pounding its way out of his chest, his skin was covered in a cold sweat, and exhaustion still weighed down on the backs of his eyes.

' _It may be a nightmare, but it's true. You're a liar, a cheat, and a failure, Jaune Arc. If you were a real Huntsman, she'd still be alive. If she had anyone else, she'd still be alive. She's dead because you aren't good enough.'_

* * *

Despite wind and rock, she landed in water. The pulsing light that drew in her soul was downriver, so she allowed the current to move her into the city. Great swathes of it were in ruin, Grimm stalking the alleyways. Slowly though, the streets cleared of rubble, black fur and red eyes faded, and streetlamps dimly lit the paths.

She felt herself begin to pass her destination, and swam to the shore.

She was also quite pleased to recall how to swim.

She dragged herself from the water, drenched through, and waited a moment on the bank to dry. She wasn't sure why, but she knew it would be bad to stay wet for too long.

The sun had set well before she pulled herself from the water, and now she wandered the streets by dim streetlight and distant fire. It was nearly an hour before she saw the first one. Pale skin, dark green cloth, and a bright silver… weapon? That was a person, a human, and they were carrying a weapon! They were called soldiers, she thought. The soldier stared into the darkness, eyes sweeping for something, but did not see her as she wandered further into the city. Her beacon was still far away, but so much closer!

She walked the streets for a few more hours, groups of soldiers and lone figures alike not paying her notice, until she arrived at a square overflowing with tents. Her destination was inside her, she could feel it! Moment after frantic moment, she ran through the narrow alleys, following the burning pull in her soul, until she found it. A tent no different from the others, but she knew this was where she needed to be. In utter silence, she pushed her way into the darkened pavilion.

Down the black hall she walked, exhilaration filling her until she found yet another vast cloth flap. Ducking past it, there was a small room with three cots and two chests. A tremendous noise rose from one cot, from a sleeping form, but the other two figures were quiet. One of them was her goal.

She could see the profile of his face, staring up at the ceiling. Blond hair, a blue eye, a face she…knew? Yes, she knew this person, and he was important to her. She inched closer to his prone form, silently creeping across the distance to him. He did not see her, eyes locked on the space above him as if his gaze would pierce the fabric.

She felt an urge to reach out to him, but she restrained herself. Why, though? Why would she not let herself reach out to him? He was what she sought, he was what pulled on her very _being_!

It was his eye. It was blue as she remembered, but it was not joyful as she recalled, it was not bright. The skin beneath it was dark, the eye red around the edges, and full of pain. Someone had _hurt_ him. She had hurt him? Yes, she had. She did not know how or when or why, but she had hurt them both.

She did not reach out for him, would not reach out to him until she could remember _something_ of use; It would not do. She slid beneath his low and narrow cot, content to wait there, out of sight, until she could properly greet him.

* * *

When Jaune woke up, he could tell something was different immediately.

Aside from the first time, a dream hadn't woken him up all night. He must've slept for at least five hours, and he felt _amazing_. Right up until he received a message from Glynda Goodwitch, asking him to meet with her.

He left Ren and Nora sparring, and headed out to hunt down the professors' offices. Goodwitch had been trying to keep the students organized, he knew, but she and the other professors were also working night and day to clear Vale of Grimm. He wasn't sure why she'd bother speaking with him at all.

The Beacon staff had moved into the upper floors of a small building not far from the plaza, and the bottom floor was of course a coffee shop; Oobleck probably lived down here. He made his way up the stairs with trepidation, found the door marked "Beacon Faculty", and knocked.

"Come in."

Jaune stepped through, into a near recreation of Goodwitch's old office. It was rather creepy, actually. The professor was at a wide, dark desk, a small mountain of paperwork scattered across the surface.

"Mister Arc, good to see you. Please, take a seat."

He cautiously approached one of the small chairs opposite his professor. "Uh, good morning, Professor Goodwitch, you wanted to see me?" She finished writing something on her papers, then set them aside before focusing on him.

"Yes, Mister Arc, thank you for the timely arrival.

"For the better part of this past month, I have been trying to see to the needs of the Beacon student body, among other things. This initially meant housing you all, finding supplies, and directing the students in our part in retaking the lost portions of Vale." She paused, and Jaune nodded for her to continue.

"However, with the students' situation finally stabilized, I have been taking aside individuals, to see what can be done for them. This has mostly been with the first years, as you were unable to receive even a full year's education before the trouble began.

"Mister Arc, your team has labored to help free Vale from the Grimm: worked tirelessly," he didn't miss the look she gave him when she said that, "but I'm concerned if staying in Vale is the right decision for you."

"What? But we're huntsmen: fighting Grimm is what we're _supposed_ to do!"

"You are students, Jaune. Students who have suffered a great deal." Her face softened, then. "I understand it's been difficult, but throwing yourselves into endless raids is not the healthy way of handling the matter. Have you considered returning home? Letting your wounds heal before charging back into the fray?"

Go home? What home? Ren and Nora had nowhere to go, and there was no way he would crawl back to his family with his tail between his legs. No way he'd come back a failure, it would only prove them right.

" _Beacon_ is our home, Professor." Her expression grew worn at the response.

"You aren't the first to tell me that. You don't have to decide now, of course. All I ask is that you and your team consider it, Jaune. You've all been through a great deal." She looked at him pointedly, eyes softening as she appraised his tired eyes and ragged body.

He pushed himself up from the chair: "Thanks, professor, I'll let Ren and Nora know. May I go?" She waved him permission.

He made his way back to their room, determined to at least try and enjoy what little energy a good night's sleep had given him.

* * *

He left the room several times, but she was content to stay in her spot. This was where he was sleeping, so he'd be back at the end of the day. In the meantime, she would think.

She knew him, knew all of them. They were her friends? Yes, her friends, and he was her partner.

What did that mean, though, and how did she hurt them? Who were they? She wracked her mind on those questions for what felt like hours. It was when the girl came back for lunch, dropping a massive hammer on the floor that she remembered some of it.

They were Huntsmen and Huntresses, or at least ones in training. She was a warrior, someone _meant_ to fight Grimm. The revelation made her feel chagrined about simply walking past the creatures of evil earlier, but in her defense, she still didn't even know who she was!

She didn't remember it, but she learned the girl's name was Nora. She'd talked to herself for a while, building herself up. She smiled at hearing the pep talk, knowing on a level she couldn't explain it was _so very Nora_.

It was when all three returned that night that she began to learn and recall more of her past. Nora called the other boy "Ren", and called her beacon "fearless leader." She knew it was only a partial joke: he was a nervous person, but he always put himself out there, he never let his fear rule him.

Unlike her, she remembered. She had let her fear rule her. Not fear of Grimm, not fear of harm, but fear of people. She let it rule her for so long, and it was her team who helped her learn to rule her fear. That was who these people were! Her team, her friends, and he was her partner on the team!

She had pushed him away.

She had pushed him away, and she had died.

She didn't want to think anymore.

No! She would not let fear rule her, they wouldn't want that! If she hid from them because she was scared of what she did, then she was letting them down again. She didn't understand how she was here, but she was, and she would make good on that! The room had long returned to sleep, Nora snoring loudly while the boys slept in silence, but she drew herself from her hiding spot beneath him.

She moved up towards him, allowing herself to reach out, tracing her hand along his body as she approached him. She stood by his head, and looked down onto his peacefully sleeping face.

Jaune. Jaune Arc was his name.

She felt joyous at that. She felt _happy_ , and she had to let it out. She touched his cheek, and tried to express her glee to him. She discovered then, that she could speak.

"Jaune." Her voice was soft, airy, but _hers_. His eyes flashed open, locking onto her.

"Pyrrha?"

* * *

He fell asleep almost immediately when they got to the room. First time that month.

He knew it was just a dream, but he didn't want it to end. It was just Pyrrha and him, sitting against a wall at Beacon, enjoying the day. They didn't speak, didn't talk about destiny or choice or anything, just enjoyed being next to each other.

Her hand slid up his arm, and Jaune quietly awoke. Something was actually moving up his arm, sliding across his hand, just next to his crotch.

Eyes still shut, Jaune desperately searched his faint, sleepy memories of Port's crazy stories for any with Grimm spiders or Grimm bugs, trying to recall what kind of horrible danger was mere inches from his business. Did the Grimm come in miniature form?

The weight shifted, sliding up his wrist. Whatever it was, it was moving with an even pressure, not lifting the limb from his body. Some kind of Grimm Octopus maybe, with a tentacle on his elbow? It rounded his shoulder, and while the weight on his arm vanished, he could feel it pushing down on the mattress. Jaune wanted to jump to his feet, he wanted to swing out his arm and fling away whatever was next to him, but that would give away that he was awake: he had to maintain the element of surprise until the perfect moment to strike.

 _'When could I possibly have more of the element of surprise than when it thinks I'm still asleep?!'_

Something touched his face lightly, and he heard her call out: "Jaune." He cracked open one eye to stare. Bronze armor, red sash, and brown gloves. Pale skin, red hair, and brilliant green eyes looking into his out of the darkness. All of it made from cloth. A doll.

A doll whose arm was touching his cheek, a doll which had just spoken in her voice.

"Pyrrha?" The eyes were fabric, the mouth a sewn line, but he could feel the brightening of those eyes, feel the smile that burst across that sewn line. This doll recognized what he said, and had smiled at him.

Jaune fainted immediately.

* * *

 **Post:** Alright, I know _someone_ is going to say it eventually, so I'll tackle the question now.

 _"Is this just Arkos From Beyond?"_ To which, my eloquent response is "Ehh, a little?" I'd obviously be lying if I said Coeur's "From Beyond", a story I thoroughly enjoyed, was not part of the inspiration of Nevrospastos. However, the story will feature a different specific setting, mostly different cast, and different plot: all it will really share is an animated doll and the general RWBY setting. Obviously, a joke that may have appeared in From Beyond may pop up, since animate dolls lend themselves to certain jokes, but I certainly don't intend to just rip off another story wholesale.

I sincerely hope you'll continue to read this story as we move along, and I hope you enjoyed chapter one. Have a great one, folks!


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Hello again! Chapter two is here, as you can obviously tell, and I hope you enjoy!

* * *

When Jaune fainted, Pyrrha panicked. Panicked so badly she barely registered she had a name now. She had scared Jaune so badly he passed out, she was a terrible friend! She threw herself off the cot and began her agonizing dash for the room's exit.

" _What about not letting fear rule me?"_ Part of her mind questioned, as she sprinted across the floor for the exit.

" _Shut up!"_ The hysterical majority wailed back. She slid through the closed flap of the room, continuing her run down the hall, towards the exit. She ran past the few tables and chairs in her way, but the glint of metal caught her eye, and she slowed. In the corner of the kitchen was a small stove, burnished steel reflecting the dim light of the room off its rounded face, and a distorted blotch of red and gold slid across it.

Entranced, Pyrrha ended her mad run, turning towards the metal. She inched her way towards it, eyes locked on the crimson figure growing on the metal. She hadn't seen herself in a long time, had she? The reflection, warped by the curvature of the metal, revealed her appearance.

Pale cloth, with fine red hair and a stitched line for a mouth. Green eyes and a small nose attached as well. Red, brown, and gold cloth mimicked armor and clothing she could remember, from sash to boots to circlet. It all _looked_ correct, but she knew it wasn't.

"My name is Pyrrha." She mused aloud, recalling the voice she had employed moments ago. She was Pyrrha Nikos. She remembered training to fight with Jaune, remember lounging in their room with Nora, or helping Ren with chores in the room.

She also remembered this was _not_ what she looked like! _"I am a doll now? I wasn't always…_

" _How has this happened? Didn't I die?"_ She had only just remembered dying, a long pain leading to a blank emptiness, and then her waking in that cavernous – no, waking in their dorm room.

"How can I talk right now?" She asked her reflection, watching her mouth not move yet still hearing her voice emerge. "In fact, how am I hearing?" She didn't even think she had ears. "Well, I suppose this is why Jaune was scared?" She turned around, dropping onto her rear and propping herself against the stove. She closed her eyes, or at least cut off her vision, and focused on her memories. She needed to understand.

She had walked to this tent, but from where?

Beacon. She had been in Beacon, and in their old dorm room. Where had she been before that?

She remembered… a tower? A tower, and before that... a basement. Jaune was there, and others she couldn't recall. One of them had golden eyes, though; she could remember those burning eyes, looking down the length of the arrow as it-

But how did she get from the top of the tower, in a body, to her room, in a doll?

… Nothing. She had no recollection.

"What do I do now?" She rightly had no idea what came next: the dead didn't come back and dolls didn't talk, but Pyrrha Nikos didn't run from a challenge.

" _Except just then."_ Pyrrha ruthlessly repressed the snarky portion of her mind, no matter how right it might be. But she needed a plan before she could act. Just like earlier, except with less blatant failure and terror. She had only just begun to run her mind through her options, when she heard soft footsteps.

" _When Jaune saw me, he fainted; I can't draw attention to myself, or it will just go badly again!"_ Pyrrha forced herself to be completely still, then realized a cloth doll would never be so rigid. The footsteps were growing louder, and she quickly went limp, sliding down the side of the cooking apparatus. The steps resolved themselves into the hulking form of a tanned young man she knew, but could still not remember. His pale green clothes swished softly as he moved with an unnatural grace, busying himself with the cookware across the room from her.

It was as he carried over a kettle that the giant of a man spotted her. He rested the kettle on the stove, then kneeled down. "Oh, and what are _you_ doing here, little one?" His gargantuan hand engulfed her, bringing her up to eye level.

Pyrrha fought every instinct to lash out.

He eyed her for a moment, then began to chuckle.

Pyrrha silently reminded herself that attacking him would probably be a bad thing.

"I'm sorry, little Pyrrha; it's not nice to laugh at you. JNPR has been... struggling…" A light flickered on behind his eyes, and a sly grin slid across his face. "Perhaps I can help." His hands dropped to his sides, and Pyrrha was wildly disoriented as she swung in his grasp. The massive man moved with silent steps, undoing all her hard-won progress in seconds by heading back down the hall.

He crept back into JNPR's room, the room her team occupied, with Pyrrha stuck staring at Nora's weapon through the man's massive grasp.

"Ah, that will do." He whispered, and his hands rose once more. Her fury flared at this indignant manhandling, but she was shoved inside a mass of cloth, the light cut off.

* * *

When Jaune woke up, he whipped his head around, shooting upright in his cot.

No terrifying, nightmarish Pyrrha doll staring at him. That was a good sign. He was only crazy when asleep.

"That. Was the weirdest dream I have ever had. Of all time." He quietly croaked. Oddly enough, this was the most rested he had ever been after a nightmare, he felt _great!_ Ren was, unsurprisingly, still sleeping, and Nora was still down for the count, so Jaune took it upon himself to get breakfast for them. He had to contribute something to the team, after all.

Jaune rose from his cot, quietly slid on his jeans, and snagged his hoodie from atop his dresser before heading out into the tent. He dropped the hood on a nearby table, deciding against putting it on before making a mess, and began to fish out ingredients. The team had been settling for MREs and the occasional basic meal, but Jaune felt like going the extra mile this morning. Flour, eggs, milk, salt, butter, sugar: he fished the ingredients from the small cabinets and fridge, hoping the other teams wouldn't take issue with him raiding their space.

Or at least not taking it up with Nora.

A few close calls later, and Jaune was resting a stack of homemade pancakes on the table, working up the courage to serve the team tradition. It was a miracle that he'd managed to not explode the flour everywhere, and Jaune finally threw the hoodie on. He felt a lump in the hood thump against the back of his neck though, and Jaune reached in to draw out the offending mystery.

He saw the doll in his hand.

Biting down a shriek and narrowly avoiding throwing the offending object at one of the walls or nearby stoves, Jaune did the next best thing. His hand went limp, and the doll slipped from out of it, onto the table.

"Hehehe, it's just a doll, Jaune. Just a doll, get a hold of yourself." He gripped the sides of his head, looking around to be sure no one was seeing him lose it.

"Uhm, Jaune?" Her voice again, and Jaune locked up like clockwork. Mechanically, he turned back to the breakfast and plushie. The doll was on its feet, arms crossed anxiously and leg twisting nervously. "I think we need to talk?"

Jaune clutched the table beside himself, fighting off the urge to pass out again. He thought his grip would shatter the wood, but he _would not_ hit the dirt.

Instead, he stared slack jawed at the possibly-talking-definitely-walking doll. " _Maybe Miss Goodwitch was right, maybe I do need a break."_

"I'm crazy. I've finally snapped under all of this shit, and I've gone crazy. Simplest explanation for it." The doll mentally pouted at him, an arm jutting out accusingly.

"Language, Jaune!" The doll froze. "Huh, I disapprove of swearing. That's… neat." He felt hysterical – the bad kind – laughter bubble up from his throat, and Jaune bit down on his tongue to stop himself.

When he thought he was about to draw blood, he stopped. "Yeah. Pyrrha didn't like swearing." He was talking to a doll now, he was _batshit insane_. Goodwitch _definitely_ had a point.

"I remember now. I do." The doll unhelpfully added with a satisfied tone. "I'm being distracted. I wasn't planning on speaking again until I figured some things out."

"Figure things out? Figure things out!? Like how I'm... hearing a doll speak!?" He bit down again, noting the rising volume and panic in his voice. He took a deep breath, let it out. Took a second to calm down.

"This can't be real. I'm hallucinating, you aren't real." Jaune turned around, shaking his head. He turned back to the doll which was inexplicably still there. The doll frowned at him. He scrunched his eyes shut, prayed, and opened them again. Still a doll.

"The large man in green put me in your hood, he can confirm it."

"Yatsu?" She slammed her hand onto the other, a pose of revelations.

"Yatsuhashi! I couldn't remember, it was ki-" It had been killing her. He snatched the plate, and turned for JNPR's room, leaving the illusory doll behind. He dropped the platter off on his dresser promptly, then continued down towards CFVY's room. He heard a near-silent scraping, and looked back to see the doll _following him_ , waving its cloth arm.

"Jaune! You're too fast, wait up!" His guilt-formed hallucination whisper-shouted to him. Instead of stopping, Jaune continued to rush down the hall to CFVY's room, and knocked lightly on the pole that served as doorbell and support. He looked back to the far end of the pavilion: the doll wasn't even past the first room yet. A cough pulled him back to his task, bringing Jaune eye-level with Yatsu's massive pecs. He looked up to address his floormate.

"Uh, morning Yatsuhashi." The behemoth nodded, a friendly smile greeting him. "So, did uh, you leave anything in my room this morning?" he tried to ask as casually as possible, skirting around the topic. The large boy smiled a bit wider, light dancing in his eyes.

"I hope you liked the doll, Jaune; I found it in the kitchen this morning, was it yours?" Jaune shook his head. "Well, I figured it was meant for you, given the obvious." Yatsuhashi must have noticed something, for the older boy rested a hand on his shoulder, speaking in a more consoling tone.

"I'm sorry if it caused undue stress, Jaune. I know we aren't too close, but I do know what it's like to lose someone, to lose a teammate."

Jaune was trying to pay attention to Yatsu, but there was someone else talking.

"Jaune! Come back, we need to talk!"

The older boy was still going on. "It… it is important to know you can still smile, still laugh. Even if you cry as well. Sometimes especially then, else you'll go mad. You'll want to bury it all, forget she ever existed; but if you push away all the pain, all the memories, the wound will simply fester."

"It's not polite to ignore someone, Jaune!" Pyrrha's voice, and its demented origin, were getting closer.

"Soooo the Pyrrha plushie was from you?" He shrugged. "Cool. Thanks, Yatsu, I… I appreciate the sentiment… and the advice. It's just been hard lately. Have a good morning."

"You as well, Jaune." The giant let the flap drop, and Jaune turned to return to JNPR's room. He stopped when he found the doll directly in front of him, hands on hips and glaring at him.

"That", the doll declared imperiously, "was very rude, Jaune."

Jaune took a deep breath. Gulped. He squatted down, snatched up the doll, and swiftly moved for the exit. It writhed and squirmed, trying to get free of his grasp, complaining about his manhandling it, but he ignored all of the protests. Once he stepped outside, the doll stilled, slumping down like the doll it should actually be.

He walked without any real destination in mind, just away. Placing as much distance as possible between himself and everybody else. That eventually took the form of an alley about ten minutes from the camp. He shoved a dumpster across the entrance, to buy himself some more time, then continued down until he found an alcove without any signs of traffic. Settled with his isolation, Jaune planted the doll on top of some electrical box, to get it near level with his face, and stepped back. It frowned at him. Or at least he thought it did, it was hard to tell with the blank cloth face and stitching.

"Okay. You're a real doll, but there's no way you're actually Pyrrha. You're not even alive." The doll frowned at him, striking a pose that was so Pyrrha it hurt to see.

* * *

Wasn't Pyrrha indeed!

Wait… was she? Yes! Yes she was!

She didn't – probably – go through so much, just to have Jaune disbelieve her! She had to convince him, persuade him, prove him wrong.

"I am too!" _"So very eloquent, Pyrrha…"_

Her partner pointed a finger at her accusingly. "Pyrrha is dead, so you can't be Pyrrha. More than that, she was a _person_. You're just some kind of hallucination or something. My guilt or crazed psyche or whatever haunting me, or whatever happens to grieving people."

She threw her arms up in frustration: "Well, I didn't say I knew _how_ I became a doll, Jaune! I only just found out this morning." Noting the total confusion, she added quietly, "I saw my reflection for the first time this morning…"

"Prove to me that you're her." Jaune's voice was a little frantic.

"How?"

"Tell me something I don't know that Pyrrha would." She considered it for a moment.

"If you don't know it, then how would me telling you convince you?" It made no sense to her. Jaune started to speak, but stopped.

"…That's actually a good point." She smiled smugly. "But if you're just a figment of my imagination then there's nothing you can tell me that I don't already know, so try."

"Well, I don't remember that much from before, but I'll try." She sat down, legs hanging off the side of the box and swinging loosely, and considered what little she could recall.

"Nora gives herself pep talks?"

He shook his head. "I've walked in on at least three of them."

"You have a very girly scream?"

"Obviously I would know what my own scream sounds like!" The reminder embarrassed him slightly, though.

" _What do I know that he doesn't? Think! Remember!"_ "I was checking you out during introductions?" She had done that, right? Right.

"I don't remember that." She gestured the obvious. "But Pyrrha wouldn-" he cut himself off, remembering something. She thought it was Jaune finally seeing she was right, but he shook his head again. Pyrrha once again delved her mind for details, things Jaune might not know.

"I… when I died, I was shot in the chest." Jaune stopped fidgeting, face paling. "And… and then, I was turned to ash." She remembered the pain, distantly, of that arrow. It had only lasted a moment, though, before she was, well, incinerated.

"I didn't know that." Jaune's voice was a whisper, slowly shaking his head in shock as his legs gave out beneath him. He fell onto a delivery ramp behind him, the concrete smacking painfully against him. He looked as if he were going to be sick, and she leapt from her perch.

She scrabbled up next to him just as he vomited on the ground. She patted his side consolingly, hoping he'd be alright.

Eventually, Jaune scooped her up again, without a word, and made his way back to the tents; he once again ignored her whispered inquiries. Without pause, he bustled them both into Team JNPR's allotted room. Nora and Ren were awake, both seated on Ren's cot enjoying the breakfast Jaune had left behind.

"Jaune!" Nora cried aloud, waving theatrically at him. Jaune's grip lightened for a moment, as she imagined he fought to repress a smile, but he proceeded to set her atop the dresser.

Nora's exuberance faded, spying her, and Ren took on a quizzical look, but Jaune said nothing, looking between her and the team.

She didn't move, remaining slumped as a doll should, and she certainly didn't speak! She'd worked this out while talking to Jaune, but she couldn't express it yet.

"Is that my doll?" Nora asked innocently, and both boys looked to her. Nora shrugged at their questioning looks before continuing: "I made plushies of all of us, right before the Tournament began: they were going to be gifts." Again, Nora shrugged.

"So, you made it?" Jaune asked, and Nora nodded the affirmative. "Did you… do anything special to it?"

"Whaddya mean?" Nora's head was tilted in confusion, and now Ren was watching Jaune.

"Did you put some kind of speech box in, or something? Is it just a normal plushie? It's just a doll, right?" An edge of horror had crept into Jaune's voice, and while Pyrrha could just barely see his face, the fear in it was disturbing.

Tentatively, she spoke: "Nora, Ren, can you hear me?" Jaune's head whipped from her to the team. No one said anything. "Jaune, can we speak more, in private?" He was glaring at her now, a mix of fear and anger. She was more interested in the fact Nora and Ren could not hear her: that would be useful, she was certain.

Nora sidled up from her perch, moving towards Jaune as she eyed him worriedly. "Yeah, it's just a doll, Jaune. Maybe I should just put it away?" She sounded like she was talking to a spooked horse. Her hands lifted towards Pyrrha, but Jaune struck first. He, once again, snatched her up.

"No! No, that's alright, I've got it! I gotta check on some stuff, I'll- I'll be back later!" He bolted back out the flap, leaving Pyrrha to watch a confused, and scared, Nora watch them go from inside his swinging grip.

* * *

Ren watched as Jaune fled the room, clutching the doll like a bleeding wound, leaving Nora with her arm reaching out to the now empty spot. She eventually spun to him, utterly lost.

"What was _that_ all about?"

Ren wasn't quite sure. "I'm not quite sure."

He returned to his breakfast, though, hoping to mull things out with his meal. Nora rejoined him, obviously also considering the turn of events. They ate in silence, a rare thing for them, until his partner finally set down her fork and knife, staring him dead in the eye.

"He's getting worse, Ren." She didn't need to say who.

"He is. He seemed much better yesterday, as well. I'm not sure what we can do."

Losing Beacon, losing Pyrrha, had been terrible. Nora often found a private place to cry, and he found himself simply mindlessly working, but they were still themselves. This was, frankly, not their first time. But it was Jaune's. Jaune, who wore his emotions on his sleeve, who emblazoned them like a banner. For the better part of this past month, he'd been near inconsolable, dragged down by his first taste, first retched bite, of real loss. Last week, however, his sorrow had begun its natural transition to grief and fury.

His own anger had been aimed at the Grimm: a logical and, ultimately healthy, target. Jaune's was almost entirely turned upon himself.

"This doll is a bad sign, I think." Nora nodded along. Jaune barely slept; he would just stare at the ceiling or pictures of their team most nights, until the exhaustion dragged him into nightmares. Awake, he looked like a man in shellshock most of the time, only really coming to himself when they were on missions. And now this?

"I have no clue where, or even how, he got it, but it's freaking him out. He looked like he expected it to bite him, and the whole voice box thing?" She didn't need to actually say it.

"I heard them for weeks. Thankfully, I had someone to rescue me from myself." He smiled then, remembering those dark days, and he didn't need to look up to know Nora was smiling, and blushing too. She was so amazing, his Nora. "But the person Jaune needs…"

"Is Pyrrha." Nora answered sorrowfully. "I don't know if Vale is a good place for him, Ren. Not if he's.. ya know." Going mad with grief? It was a cruel thing to think of his leader, his friend, his _brother_ , but it was a concern. The dark mood of Vale, and especially the combat missions, were unhealthy and dangerous if Jaune couldn't break through his sorrow.

Ren didn't like going behind Jaune's back, as it were, but they needed to look out for him. "I'll speak with the professors. Perhaps they will have a suggestion." He hoped they would have a solution.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** _tentatively offers chapter_

See you in post.

* * *

Jaune sprinted back out of the tent, the… thing under his arm complaining the whole way. Back out of the encampment, down the alley, around the dumpster, and into the abandoned loading bay. He again set the doll on the electrical box, then stepped back from it. As he did so, it reached out to him, and he saw - sensed, whatever -in its expression.

"Jaune, loo-" It was too late.

He'd already stepped in his vomit from earlier. "Eww."

"Eww." The doll mimicked, and he barely repressed a hysterical - still the bad kind - laugh.

"They didn't hear you, you didn't move, so that settles it: you're not real. At least, you're just a doll Nora made, and the rest is in my head."

"I didn't move because I didn't move, Jaune. As for not hearing me, I don't know why that is; Yatsuhashi didn't seem to hear me either. I have an idea why, though."

He snorted as loudly as he could. "What's that?"

"I think you can hear me because I unlocked your aura. Our very souls were linked for a moment, Jaune. Granted, I hadn't expected a connection like this…"

She had said 'unbound by death'. He could remember every second of that moment perfectly, all he had to do was close his eyes, and he could be back there. No! No, she was distracting him!

"Well, why didn't you move? Nora and Ren were just as much Pyrrha's friends as me!" The doll's patch eyes couldn't change, none of its face could, but he could tell she was giving him that flat look. He hated that.

"Jaune, when you first saw me, you fainted."

"I didn't faint!" He protested.

She rolled her eyes, and head with it. "Fine, you 'passed out'. Jaune, if you responded like that, how would Ren and Nora? The person I trust most in the world, my closest friend, is terrified of me. If anyone sees an animate doll, they'll freak out."

"AND I'M NOT FREAKING OUT RIGHT NOW?" He howled at it. She took a step back, bumping into the wall.

"Jaune…" The voice was scared. He knew what she would say next, and he ran before she could.

* * *

"I'm sorry." Her voice was hollow to her own ears. Well, her own senses. Jaune's form was already retreating down the alley, and she could do naught but watch him run.

"No. I won't give up. I can't give up." Jaune was scared, he was uncertain, but she couldn't give up on him! She was his friend, his partner, and that pulling on her soul kept drawing her to him. Perhaps that was to do with her unlocking Jaune's aura, as well?

She shook her head: the cause of all this was secondary until she could deal with her relationship troubles. Jaune thought she wasn't real, so she had to prove she was. Not the easiest task, she could admit, but she was up to the challenge! If he left her behind, she'd come back. If he ignored her, she'd keep talking: it wasn't like she had anything else to do, now. Jaune wouldn't push her away, she wouldn't let him!

Eventually, she made her way back to the tent, moving in stealth to avoid being spotted by the waking and training students. Arriving at JNPR's berth, she noted their equipment was gone. She considered continuing on to Jaune's location, she could find him with that inner compass, but instead made her way to the dresser she'd been placed before.

With some effort, she managed to get locate Jaune's designated drawer, and dropped down to lay in wait. He could run away from her all he'd like, but what would he do without socks? She giggled at the ridiculousness of the plan, her lying in wait amongst laundry, but stayed firm in her commitment.

She noted a small bunch of powder blue then, in the back corner. Pyrrha couldn't immediately recall anything that color in Jaune's wardrobe – not that she could remember much in detail at the moment. She had all the time in the world, so she decided to investigate.

It was warm, and bright, and it smelled a bit like Jaune: a onesie. Silly memories boiled back as she barely stifled her own laughter. Memories of their discovering Jaune's ridiculous choice of nightclothes, and the efforts to save what little dignity he had remaining. They'd convinced him, eventually, to switch to more traditional boy's nightwear.

As she dragged the cloth from its hiding place to the forefront, settling down in the cushiony fabric, she was quite glad Jaune had kept it.

* * *

Jaune was deteriorating rapidly.

It was a misery for he and Nora to watch, which was why he had finally brought himself to this. He was seated across from Prof. Goodwitch, her office at Beacon all but recreated two floors above Dr. Oobleck's favorite coffee shop.

"Mister Arc seemed to be doing rather well when we last spoke, Mister Ren, are you sure this is necessary?" Goodwitch was, unsurprisingly, taken aback by his assertions Jaune's mental state was compromised.

"I'm afraid so, professor. Jaune's insomnia has been replaced with sleep walking: he will leave the room in the night to wander." To bring the damn doll back. "With no recollection of doing it. He's jumpy; we believe he's starting to hear things, maybe even see things. He's gone from a walking zombie to a paranoid. If he were to have an… _incident_ on a mission, it could be disastrous."

"I had no idea his condition had regressed so quickly.": the woman was rightly shocked. _They_ were shocked, too.

"It started a few days ago. We think there was a trigger, but we don't know what to do." He knew what had done it, the damn doll. But every time they got rid of it, it was back in the morning. Either Jaune was lying when he claimed it wasn't him, or he was recovering it unconsciously, which was terrifying to consider. Nora and he had both gone to lengths hiding it, but come the morning it would be by Jaune's bed or in his drawer or by his gear. He'd almost burned the thing, but simply couldn't bring himself to do it. Not to Pyrrha.

"We think if we get Jaune away from Vale, away from Beacon, we can help. Even if we're not on missions, he's still in a high-stress environment. We'd like to get him somewhere where he's away from all this."

"His home? Mr. Arc is from Bar, is he not? Flights to it are somewhat regular." Jaune had spoken once or twice of home, but had never spent too much time on it around her or Nora. And while visiting the Arcs was something Ren desired, it was not what the team needed right now.

"Respectfully, ma'am, I disagree. Jaune's departure for Beacon was not… amicable. I think his family would be a poor choice. Nora and I were thinking Patch."

"Patch?" The professor considered it for but a moment. "To the Xiao-Long household? Are you sure _that_ is wise?" Ruby and Yang weren't in very good shape, either.

"We think the familiar faces", and the isolation, "would outweigh the negatives. It also lets us help our friends. Jaune is best when he has a task at hand, but missions are too dangerous. If we frame the trip to him as a way to help Ruby and Yang recover, he may apply himself to that." Ren then followed up with his preferred argument.

Silence.

With his proposal left afloat, the professor had to turn it over in her head. Emotions warred across her face, guilt dominating it he thought, but the woman eventually reached for a small stack of paper.

"I worry if letting him lose himself in 'work' is the correct solution, but…

"Mr Ren, I otherwise agree with your assessment. Team JNPR will be removed from the active duty roll, effective immediately, and I will begin looking for accommodation in Patch. We have some communication lines with Signal Academy, and at the worst you may reside there." Ren nodded in thanks, not trusting his own voice at the moment.

Ren messaged Nora their success once he exited the meeting, and the two decided to wait until dinner to tell their leader. Ren made sure to secure the ingredients for the baked pasta Jaune was so fond of, hoping a good meal would distract and ease his worries. Nora kept Jaune busy through the afternoon with sparring and her stories: his body too busy or his mind too full to brood. Once those avenues were exhausted, Ren dragged Jaune into the cooking process, and then the cleaning process, until their food was ready. Chowing down, and Nora returning with yet more entertainment, kept their exhausted friend properly distracted.

As they finished their meal, Ren almost felt guilty about have to break the mild peace that had come over Jaune. He'd _seemed_ better for most of today; then Ren had found the doll, tucked away under his pillow.

"Jaune." Ren cleared his throat, realizing how hard this would be. His brother had turned to him, a small smile on his face. "Professor Goodwitch", he coughed again nervously, "informed me we were going to be removed from the duty rolls, and sent to Patch. For recovery." He didn't have to explicitly mention it was _their_ idea, did he?

Jaune looked confused, then angry, then confused again.

"But… why? Did something happen? I thought we were doing okay on our missions?" He really didn't see it, did he? Nora took up the fight, then.

"I got the message a little while ago. They said it was on grounds of bereavement." She couldn't meet their eyes as she said it: Nora was always a terrible liar, if she had to face someone when she did it. There had been no such message to them, but rather _from_ them.

"Bereavement…" Jaune's voice was hollow, afraid.

"Jaune." Ren had moved close, sitting down beside his friend. "I know it's difficult, what you're going through. Nora and I have been through it before ourselves. You might not think you need help, or that you can't let other others help you, but that's wrong." Ren was terrified to see Jaune's eyes turning towards the chest he'd put the doll in. Put the doll in when Jaune wasn't present. "We want to help, Jaune, and this city is killing you." Nora went a little stiff at his words, but she didn't argue.

"I don't want to lose another friend, Jaune, I don't want to lose my family again. Let us help you."

Jaune broke down crying.

* * *

It was hard, accepting you were crazy.

"Jaune, will you please talk to me?"

Especially when your insanity took the form of your dead partner-best-friend-maybe-kinda-girlfriend.

"I won't let you avoid this, Jaune. Let me help you." The muffled cry emanated from his backpack, while he stared off over the rolling seas. JNPR was ship-bound for Patch, to take up residence with the Xiao-Long household.

To his own sick amusement, Ren and Nora were both on the other side of the boat, losing their lunches, while he sat fit as a fiddle.

"It's been two days, Jaune, please!" Fit, other than the whole crazy part.

He unslung his bag, but didn't open it. Instead, Jaune hung it over the side of the boat.

" _Just let go of it, and I'd be free of the thing. That's all it would take. It's not really her."_ He told himself. _"But if it's not real, how does it keep ending out of every box and bag and drawer you put it in? How does it know things you don't? How do you know what direction it is?"_ That was a recent occurrence, and a terrifying one. It was like, he wasn't sure, some kind to tugging on his insides, and it always led to the doll.

He brought the bag back, setting it down next to himself.

"Jaune, I know you have a hard time accepting help from others." The voice paused. "Oh, you have a hard time accepting help from others!" It sounded cheerier than it had any right. "But wait, didn't we deal with this? You and I were training partners." The doll would often stop, look off for a moment, and 'remember' things: it was really creepy. Jaune shook his head, looking back at the water.

He was crazy. He didn't _like_ that he was crazy, but he agreed with the assessment. The teachers did, the team did, and he did. So, he was crazy. The doll wasn't Pyrrha. And yet…

He was going to Patch, to stay with Ruby and Yang. Officially, this was to help them heal, and he hoped to do that too. But he'd gained a secret purpose. One he dared not share with any of his friends, alive or dead. Pyrrha was dead, he knew that. All that was left of her was a few pieces of metal, stowed reverently in his other bag. He knew where Pyrrha had died, knew when.

But he didn't know _how._

He had accepted that he was crazy, it was the only thing that made any kind of sense. That he was hallucinating, sleepwalking, all that stuff. He'd asked the doll to tell him something he didn't know, though, and it told him a way Pyrrha had died. He was crazy, the doll's story was him making something up. But if _Ruby_ told him the same story?

Well, maybe he wasn't crazy?

* * *

 **Post:** So... this story hasn't updated in a while? I'm sorry for that. I know I said this would update irregularly, but is didn't mean _this_ irregular. I was distracted by this real-world issue, and that story, and yada yada yada. I messed up with Nevros, that's the result. But with WPF on a long-term hiatus and none of my other stories posted yet, I'm free to focus more on Nevros. I _still_ have other fics, so I won't be updating this fic with incredible speed, but more updates will come. I promise. On the bright side, I believe I'm a better writer than I was when I began this story, or even wrote this chapter some months ago!


	4. Chapter 4

"Nora, I've set up a mattress in Ruby's room. Ren, Jaune: you two have the guest room."

Tai _probably_ should have just called the guestroom "my old weight room", but he'd moved all his equipment to the shed and found air mattresses: it was a guest room now. The energetic ginger went off with Ruby happily enough, while Mr. Silent and Mr. Brooding slinked down the hall. Yang was about to sneak off herself, but Tai dropped a hand on her head, stopping her.

"Can we talk for a minute?" She seemed so tired, but she nodded.

They sat down on Yang's bed, his daughter holding her knees against herself. "Honey, if you aren't comfortable with Juniper staying here, they can stay at Signal: it wouldn't be an issue." Yang's eyes went wide, but she looked away.

"No, it's okay…" She muttered, staring at the floor.

"Are you sure, Yang? They're your friends, but _you're_ my daughter, you and Ruby come first." She nodded again, still not looking up to him. The boys moved past, heading down the hall towards Ruby's room. The black-haired boy, Ren, nodded pleasantly. The blond stared at the floor.

"That Jaune kid's in rough shape, I thought you said he was a goof?"

 _Ruby_ had nicknamed him Vomit Boy, Yang had referred to him as _Lady Killer_ : he figured from all their stories he'd be like Ruby. The young man he'd been dealing with the past several days was someone struggling terribly, and it didn't take a genius to understand that Juniper being down a member and Jaune Arc's mood were connected.

"His partner was Pyrrha, the girl Ruby saw…" Yang trailed off, hugging herself tighter.

Suspicion confirmed, Tai felt a kinship for the boy he'd never expected. "Were they…?"

Yang shook her head, "Pyrrha was crazy for him, but Jaune's an idiot; spent most of the year chasing Weiss."

Tai snorted quietly: he didn't imagine that went well, based off his brief acquaintance with Weiss. She was a good young woman, but… prickly.

"They were super close, though, a lot of us thought it would just be a matter of time. I remember talking with Bla-" Yang cut off abruptly, curling into a tighter ball. Gently, Tai reached out and wrapped an arm around his daughter, pulling her against his side. Yang tried to shake him free at first, but the meek protests gave way soon, his elder daughter pressing into his side silently.

Jaune Arc was not the only one struggling. Both his girls had come home broken, and while Ruby had thrown herself into hunting Grimm on Patch, Yang was bedridden more days than not. He hoped Yang would find that fire again, the drive that propelled her so ferociously in Signal. Someone so young shouldn't be so broken.

He'd help them. Yang, Ruby, even Jaune Arc. That was his promise.

* * *

As soon as Ruby had shut the door, Nora had hauled her to the closet, holding up a flashlight rather than turn on the light. The light demeanor Nora always projected was gone, replaced with a dour focus that scared her a little.

"Alright, Ruby! Ren's gonna distract Jaune for a minute, so we gotta talk. Jaune's in a bad way: he stopped sleeping for a while, and now he's hearing stuff. I know you guys aren't in great shape either, but you need to know what's going down."

Ruby nodded dumbly along, still trying to catch up. "Whatever you do, don't ask about the doll."

"…The doll?" Okay, now things were really weird.

"He's got this plushie of Pyrrha; takes it everywhere now. We told him to leave it in Vale, but he probably has it. Don't ask about it."

"…Can I ask you about it?" Nora shrugged.

"I made it, but I left it in Beacon. He won't say how he got it. We think we've caught Jaune talking to it a few times, like he's holding a conversation. It's not good, but we don't really know how to handle this.

"Nora, this is really weird." Given how her life had been going, calling _anything_ weird was a surprise, but Nora didn't reply. "Jaune's hearing things and carrying around a doll he shouldn't be able to have, and I shouldn't talk about either? What should I do?"

She wanted to help, of course, but it was kinda important to figure out how!

"Just be you," Nora said plainly, "maybe let Jaune help you with stuff, to keep his mind off things: he's always better when he's busy."

Oh, she could take him hunting with her! She discovered hunting Grimm was a great way to deal with her problems, she felt good as new after a long day in the backwaters of Patch on a Grimm hunt. Actually, maybe fighting wasn't the best choice for Jaune: he was a friend, but he still kinda sucked at it.

They could play video games? Nah. Cook? That was Ren's thing. Hike? Well, that normally just turned into Grimm hunting…

"I'll think of something." They heard Ruby's door open, and a hesitant Ren called out to them.

Nora clapped both hands on Ruby's shoulders confidently, then barreled out of the closet. "Sorry, guys, Ruby and I were having some girl talk!" She shot her a look, and Ruby nodded along.

"Uhh, yeah! Girl talk! Ya know, nails, boys, high impact dust rounds…" She was rambling. "Hey, Jaune!" She sped over to hug her friend. He returned it, barely.

"Uh, hi. Ruby. Thanks for putting us up."

"Not a problem! Anything for friends, right? It's great to see you guys, too! I can show you around Patch, and we can do stuff like…"

" _Crap, still no ideas_. _"_

"Stuff!"

" _Great save there, Ruby."_

Jaune looked a little confused, but Nora just nodded furiously, giving her a thumbs up from behind the tall boy as she unpacked her bags. Ruby decided that, even with this new problem in her life, she was glad to have Nora back. Especially when Magnhild's cannister rounds clunked onto the table.

She and Juniper talked about stuff for a while: Vale, Patch, _the weather_. Oh boy, she'd never thought she'd be so nervous to ask Ren about the weather! They'd gotten nearly an hour into settling her friends into the house when Jaune went and dropped a bomb on them.

"Hey guys, mind if I talk to Ruby in private for a while?"

Nora and Ren looked like they were about to panic, and Ruby wanted to say no, but the look he gave her? Jaune was out of ammo in the middle of a swarm of Grimm, and she had an extra clip.

"Sure, Jaune." She was quiet, but firm, pushing Nora towards the door. As she began to swing it close behind the girl she hissed out "Don't worry, I'll be careful!" She closed it firmly and returned to Jaune as confidently as she could.

"So, Jaune, what can I do for ya?" she asked, pressing as much of her cheer as possible into the question. Jaune looked hesitant, shuffling from foot to foot as they stood in the middle of her room.

"I need to ask you- I need to ask you about Pyrrha." Her confidence vanished in a heartbeat, and Ruby's heart began to beat very fast.

"Jaune." She tried to say more, but her friend stared her dead in the eyes, taking hold of her shoulders. They were shining and wild, set deep and ringed with bags.

"Please, Ruby. I need to know. It's- I've been-", he stopped to take a breath, "I need to know what happened to her, _exactly_ what happened to her, or I might just go crazy." She flinched at the raw desperation in his voice.

"She… she…" Ruby didn't want to think about _that night_ , it was the worst day of her life. But, Jaune needed this; this would help Jaune, wouldn't it? Closure and all that? She was 15, she's wasn't supposed to have to do stuff like this!

"Please." He squeezed harder. Her heart hammered in her ears, she thought she could feel the wind of her flight up the tower again.

"She was shot with an arrow." She blurted, and Jaune's grip vanished.

"C-Cinder Fall shot her in the chest, right here." She tapped Jaune's breastplate. "and then, Cinder… turned her to ash."

"JAUNE!" He didn't respond to the shout. She smacked him on the face, apologizing as she swung. It seemed to snap him out of it, at least. "Jaune, you okay?" Ren and Nora burst in then, freaked out looks on their faces.

"Sorry, Ruby, i… I need to go for a run." Jaune headed for the door, pushing past them when they tried to stop him. "I'll be back later, promise."

Ren and Nora turned back to her, worried and confused.

"So, uhh… Jaune wanted to talk about Pyrrha?" The blood drained from their faces in an instant. _"good job, Rubes…"_

* * *

Jaune tore off his armor, grabbed the bag the doll was in, and sprinted from the house.

" _Shot in the chest, turned to ash. Shot in the chest, turned to ash. Shot in the chest, turned to ash."_ The words a mantra, running on repeat in his head as he ran further and further into the wood surrounding the cabin. He could hear something else, someone else, but he ignored it.

" _Shot in the chest, turned to ash. Shot in the chest, turned to ash."_ He couldn't unhear it, couldn't stop thinking it.

"JAUNE!" The voice was a howl, and Jaune snapped from his daze. He was in the woods, surrounded on all sides with no sign of a path. His heart was hammering, he was soaked with sweat. His bag was heavy on his back. "Jaune, what's going on?"

With leaden arms, he slid the bag off, letting it fall to the ground. The voice protested, and he made to untie it. His hands shook, but he got it on the third try, and the doll scrambled out of the bag. He could feel the worry on its fabric face.

"How did you know?" It watched him in confusion, hesitance. " _How_ , did you _know_? About Pyrrha?"

"Because _I_ _am_ Pyrrha." It countered with utter certainty. "Or, at least, all that's left of me…", that was said with less conviction.

"You can't be!"

"But I am!" The doll shouted back. The force of the shout, resonating in his mind, pushed Jaune back a step, his back rebounding against a tree.

"It's not possible: you're dead. You're dead, Pyrrha, and I…" he slid down the tree, landing with a soft thump on the leafy ground. "I let you down, you're dead…"

His head buried in his hands, Jaune tried to ignore the soft crunching and shuffling of the leaves, until he felt a pressure on his foot. "You sent me away, you… you're…"

"Jaune?" It was soft, not the determined shout from before. He drew his hand back to look at the plushie; it was standing on his foot, arms braced against his shin.

"I'm not crazy, am I? You really are Pyrrha." She nodded. Trembling, Jaune reach out to grab the doll, gently this time. He stared at those kind, unchanging eyes, then pressed her close in a tight hug. He didn't care if he was crying, this time it was tears of joy. He felt the doll grip him back, though with some difficulty, and Pyrrha began to softly shush him.

"It's alright, Jaune. Everything's going to be alright."

"I know," his voice hitched as he spoke, "I know it'll be alright. You're back."


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** God this is embarrassing. There was a mix-up with my files/save names, and I posted chapters out of order. On top of that, I'm an idiot who didn't even notice the rror. To anyone who was supremely confused, that my bad. I have updated the story, replacing Chapter 4 with the _real_ chapter four, and what i had originally posted is now chapter 5. I am working on Chapter 6 as we speak, as well as some other stories.

I am very very sorry.

* * *

He had eventually stopped crying like a little girl, which was nice. Not as nice about learning his best friend was alive, but still something.

Pyrrha was alive.

 _Pyrrha_ was _alive_.

That was the best sentence he'd thought in a long time. Pyrrha wasn't _fine_ , there was a lot wrong with this whole situation, but the fact she was standing before him, talking to him was infinitely better than the world he'd been living in earlier.

Well, she wasn't really standing before him; she was resting on his shoulder.

And she's wasn't really talking, either, she was more just a voice projected into his mind.

So yeah.

There was a mountain of things he wanted to talk to her about, a thousand questions and a hundred confused feelings all bubbling behind his lips, but he repressed them for her sake. As he had seen this past week, Pyrrha had another problem in her new… condition. Her memory had been damaged.

She remembered him, remembered her name and the team and where she was from. Yet there were strange gaps on her memory; she didn't remember what Grimm were or what Huntsmen did, for example. She didn't remember her semblance, or what her shoe size was, or what the last book she had read was.

It was Pyrrha, but as if you were quizzing her as she woke up early in the morning: mind still fuzzed with sleep.

Pyrrha was alive, and so long as that was true he could help her fill the blanks. Maybe they'd come back on her own? He had watched her remember things before, hadn't he? But as he had spent the past several minutes staring happily at the cloth doll on his shoulder, thinking of what was to come, a new question popped into Jaune's head.

How the hell were they supposed to handle this?

He should probably ask her that.

"Pyrrha?"

"Yes, Jaune?" His partner's voice echoed lightly in his head. That plain cloth face still couldn't change, but he still knew Pyrrha was happily embarrassed by his enraptured state. He couldn't help staring at her, _Pyrrha_ was _alive_.

"What are we going to do?"

"I… what do you mean?"

Jaune waved an arm towards her. "How are we going to explain this to everyone? I'm not crazy, how do we convince everyone else? How are we going to help you? Can we, I don't know, fix you?"

A cloth mit came to rest under Pyrrha's chin, a thoughtful air emanating from his partner. He was desperate for an answer, but he knew this was _not_ something he could afford to rush.

And he suspected part of it was just wanting to hear Pyrrha.

Pyrrha looked away from him after a minute, her figure turning to nervously watch the floor of the forest.

"We don't?"

It took a moment for the answer to pierce his partner-addled mind.

"We don't? Don't tell anyone? But what about Ren and Nora? They'll be through the moon to know, Pyrrha!"

"I know!" she replied guiltily, "But _how_ do we make them believe us?"

He knew that would be the biggest issue, but had been ignoring it. Pyrrha, however pushed on.

"You can hear me, but the others don't. I only convinced you because we could talk. I can move, yes, but there are many strange things in the world. Your semblance could very well be moving inanimate objects like puppets."

"I could talk for you! You speak to me, I speak to them? There has to be things you and Nora know that I don't."

"Maybe, but I still have a hard time remembering things, and do I know something that would unequivocally convince Ren and Nora? If I do, what about Team RWBY? The staff at Beacon? At a certain point, there's nothing you or I could do, Jaune."

"Well why shouldn't we try with Ren and Nora? And RWBY?"

"What happens if we fail, Jaune? We have to consider both the rewards of success and the price of failure." Pyrrha delivered that in the same even tone she used whenever she fell into her role as tutor, but the words were like a hammer to the stomach to him.

Consider the price of failure? _He_ had to consider the price of failure?! Had Pyrrha considered it?! Had _she_ considered it when she had sent him away, gone up the tower alone and -

And Pyrrha was alive. And he needed to stay calm, and remember that Pyrrha was alive.

And Pyrrha was right, damn it. If they failed, nothing good would come of it; they already thought he was crazy, him _showing_ he was nuts would be bad. If they didn't let on, his friends would be left worried, but they _might_ leave it alone.

"Pyrrha, I don't know if you remember, but I'm not exactly great at lying."

A cloth hand patted his cheek. "It's alright, we can do this together."

That same utterly sure confidence, even if the sound only resonated within his mind. How often had she used that same tone to straighten his spine? How often was it she knew he could do something, even before he knew?

A treacherous corner of his mind tried to turn that thought against him, but he slipped by safely.

"Okay, so… how do we do this? What's the plan?" He asked after a calming breath.

"For now? We need to get back to it, Jaune." The spectral smile he more felt than saw grew by degrees, and Jaune knew all too well what was coming.

"We need to get you training again."

* * *

Ren would never pretend to have a stable life. The most constant thing in it was Nora being amazing, and even she did that in her unconstant way. That being said, the recent swing in his life this past week was a rather strong one.

On their first day in Patch, Jaune had run into the woods and been missing for four hours, only to come back with tear-stained cheeks and a barely controlled smile. For the last six days, Jaune had been unnerving in a brand new way that started with that late-night return. His edged paranoia had been replaced by a nearly repressed mania: they would find him simply smiling with his sight unfocused, or speaking quietly with the damn doll in private spaces of the house, or simply a normal Jaune ready to help with whatever needed doing.

The training disturbed Ren the most, in its own way: Jaune was a demon for sparring. Any moment of free time seemed to become a chance to ask Tai for grappling practice, asking Ren for aura work, convincing Nora or Ruby to fight. And every evening, without fail, Jaune would wander into the woods with sword in hand.

Sword in hand, and the _doll_ hidden away on his person.

Jaune still could not be separated from it, but his apparent fear of the cloth fiend had vanished; Jaune didn't carry it around in open view at all times, but neither was it left sequestered in their room. Had Jaune given in to his delusions? Had he tried to make an escape from reality, and now imagined Pyrrha returned to them? It grimly explained the upturn in Jaune's mood.

At the moment, Ren was seated on the couch beside Nora and Yang, with Ruby in the neighboring chair. The four of them had managed to coax Yang from her room - she was having a "good" day - and had gathered to watch a movie together. Jaune had volunteered to whip up some snacks and darted into the kitchen while they had tried to pick a suitably light movie.

Jaune's upward degrading state aside, Patch was going mildly well? Or as well as it _could_ when Jaune's stability had been their goal. Ruby was quieter, more prone to hesitancy, but otherwise her same self. Yang had been extremely reticent when they arrived, and she still was, but this was the first "good" day for the blonde girl since returning to her home.

"How about 'From Atlas with Love'? That's one of the good ones, right?" Nora asked as she watched Yang.

"...It's okay." Yang eventually muttered back, watching the coffee table. This response was enough for his partner, who bounced in her seat as she selected the movie. Nora had decided that the best approach for all three of their friends was to continue on as always, recruiting the others when need arrived to combat any fear or depression that might arise. Nora would beat back the horrors of the world with her smile.

He was hardly one to question its efficacy.

"Ren and I saw this one _yeeaaars_ ago, I barely remember anything from it! I really liked that one dancing scene, but I never got the moves down."

That had been a rather trying two months, he remembered. Nora would snatch any piece of metal she thought would work for her recreation of the outfit.

Ruby piped up then: "I remember Yang trying to copy some of the moves in the train fight! She almost had the thing where you hang from a pole and kick down, but then the gutter tore off the side of the house…"

"Not my best call." Yang muttered again, but Ren believed he spied the faintest smile at the memory. "Dad made me fix it; I spent a week putting up the new gutter."

"Gutters? We talking about my combat score?" Jaune asked as he joined them with a wry smile. Yang hitched slightly in a contained snort, while Ren watched his leader set the coffee table with an array of snacks.

"Jaune, don't be mean." Ruby said gravely as she grabbed a fistful of popcorn.

"Even if I'm talking about me?"

"Especially when you talk about you."

Jaune sighed dramatically, as if to say 'you all are way too defensive' before dropping into the chair across from the younger girl. "Atlas with Love? Love this one! Pyrrha and I marathoned a bunch of spy movies the week after the Breach: great times…."

His leader drifted off wistfully with a fond smile, and Ren found himself drifting back to the moment. It had been a good weekend, even after the chaos of danger of the attack. All of JNPR had watched a movie together, but Pyrrha and Jaune had spent the rest of the day marathoning: Pyrrha curled up in her blankets contentedly, Jaune sprawled out next to her. The two of them must have watched half of the entire series.

It occurred to him Pyrrha would never see the other half, and his joy dimmed. Ren returned to himself as the screen faded black, and peered across to the other boy. Jaune still smiled happily, as if the thought that weighed upon Ren had never occurred to him. He dropped a handful of popcorn into his mouth, and slid his free hand down to his side.

There, stowed out of sight from anyone not watching, Ren thought he spotted a flash of red.

He didn't need to see the rest to know what was there. He needed to do more for Jaune. And soon.

* * *

Jaune's rocking form came to a stop, and Pyrrha pulled herself up from inside his cradling hood. His breath was coming just slightly faster than normal and she could see the faintest sheen of sweat on his neck; their jog had just about warmed him up, she thought.

"So," Jaune said as he kneeled down and allowed her to scramble free, "same combination as yesterday?"

She dropped free of her partner, then began to stroll to the fallen tree that had become her perch. Well, it was more an overgrown sapling than a proper log, but given her size, the idea was the same! "Exactly, Jaune. Your form has gotten much better already."

Crocea Mors drawn and shield deployed, Jaune had begun to warm up his arms. Across the small clearing from him was a blackened and scarred trunk, they suspected lightning had stuck the tree once. The space wasn't too far from the cabin, but still remote, and open enough for maneuvering. It made the perfect spots for their joint training.

"Your favorite food." Jaune said, swinging his blade lightly.

"Ummmm… honeydew?" She asked. She was pretty sure she liked honeydew.

Jaune shook his head, however. "That's your favorite fruit, but your favorite food is-"

"Don't tell me!" She yelled, pressing her hands to her temples frantically. "I know this, I know this…"

Above her, she could see Jaune fall into a guard stance

"Foot a bit farther forward." His lead foot inched into the correct location. "Chocolate cake!" She cried!

Jaune surged forward in a lunge she knew to be textbook perfect. "Correct!" He cheered.

"And good form just then!"

"Thanks, I have a good teacher." Pyrrha felt as if her chest should swell with pride at the compliment, but found that very difficult without a proper body, so she settled with exuding pleasure. Jaune seemed to match her feeling, as he fell back into guard position with a smile crinkling the corners of his eyes.

"Hmmm… your last paper?" another smart lunge, and a new direction to the quizzing; they had mostly kept to her feelings and opinions, as actual events tended to be less clear to her. Jaune carried through several more lunges as she pondered.

"Tick tock tick tock, Pyrrha Nikos is on the clock~," Jaune sang.

"I'm thinking, please!"

"Gotta think faster than this." He teased.

She quested back in her mind, looking for the correct memory. There was something, she could feel it! Was it on the Vytal Festival? She could recall a great deal of writing for that, couldn't she?

"A report on previous Vytal Tournaments?" She asked as Jaune practiced his lunge in a sequence of strikes.

"Hyya! No, try again: how was the combo?"

"Your shield was in the right place, but your sword was too low on the backstep and the parry." She replied unthinkingly.

"Dangit." He breathed.

He was right, the Vytal Festival hadn't been the focus at all, perhaps she was recalling an older task? Before Beacon? So much of it was jumbled in her inadequate, cotton-headed mind.

"Oh, gravity dust application in small arms rounds!" She offered, this time receiving an excited nod just as Jaune began his attack.

"And for a grade, Peach gave you…?" He panted.

"It was Port, and it was a ninety-five!"

"And Nikos scores!" He called before clanging sword and shield together loudly. "At this rate, you'll be back in top form and I won't embarrass us every other swing by the end of the year!"

* * *

Nights were an odd experience for Pyrrha. JNPR's room was dark, though Pyrrha couldn't see anything regardless, buried in Jaune's blankets. She could hear Jaune's quiet muttering as well as the harmonized deep breaths of Ren and shuddering snores of Nora. She knew the chorus very well, and the sounds soothed her mind.

But she did not sleep.

It made sense, really, being disembodied and all. Thankfully, she didn't sit in anticipation of the day through the night, as her mind still remembered sleep. She found herself drifting almost into a trance; a state of easy inaction where time seemed to fly by. If she wished, she could fight off the feeling and remain fully alert, she'd been testing it recently, but she felt no need tonight.

Instead, she listened to the rhythmic sleeping of her closest friends, felt the stirring form of her partner, and drifted easily through the night. The wood of the cabin creaked as the wind picked up outside, great swathes of leafs pulling free from the trees in the autumn wind.

 _I should go find Ruby_.

Pyrrha was unsure why the thought struck her, but it pulled her free from her rest and wriggled loose from Jaune's mattress. Despite the pitch darkness of the room, she could see the closed door; the wardrobe next to it would be an easy climb, however. She scaled the wooden surface with ease and eyed the gap separating her from the handle: a couple feet, but she could clear it.

With a silent running start, Pyrrha leapt the distance and hooked herself around the handle. The weight of her collision was enough to do it, and the door inched open as she dropped to the floor with a soft thump. Climbing back to her feet, she slipped through the gap and looked down the darkened hall. Ruby's room wasn't so far was it?

She made her way through the moaning house, though her midnight walk took much longer than it would any of the other inhabitants. The wooden steps and boards made no noise under her padded feet as she moved soundlessly towards the not-quite-shut door of Ruby's room. As she slid through the small crack, she heard faint whimpers.

In the small bed across from her, Pyrrha could see Ruby's form twisting and turning in her sheets. The smaller girl mewled and cried as she tossed about.

 _She's having a nightmare._

Compelled to help, Pyrrha rushed the distance between them. She wrapped her cloth limbs around the leg of the bed and began to haul herself up; the climb was difficult with neither proper handholds nor hands, but she was quickly becoming a master of climbing under these less than ideal circumstances.

Arriving at the top, Pyrrha looked down the length of her small - her once small - friend. Ruby had curled herself in a ball, the blankets and sheets tugged loose and collapsed around her as she shook. She crept forward, wary of any shifts in the mattress caused by the girl, lest she knock her to the floor. She crossed the distance, however, and stood a bare foot away from Ruby.

Eyes clenched shut and hands fists against her chest, Ruby was clearly terrified of what she dreamed. How could Pyrrha help? Could she relieve her some way? She stepped closer, reaching out a hand.

Large fingers snaked around her midsection and pulled her up swiftly.

The room spinned until Pyrrha was greeted with Jaune's fearful face.

"What are you doing?" he hissed, backing away quietly.

"I… I was looking for Ruby, she was having a nightmare!" She hissed back, despite knowing she could only be heard within her partner's mind.

* * *

Ruby was running. Her blood pounding in her ears, drowning out the horrible noise of the attack below her. Weiss' glyphs lined her path up the tower, speeding her rush to aid Pyrrha above. She didn't know why Pyrrha was in danger, or who she was fighting, but she knew she needed to be there. She reached the lip of the tower and blazed past it, landing on her feet.

Everything was in ruins save for two figures silhouetted from the rubble. Pyrrha on her knees, looking up at Cinder Fall, bow drawn and arrow knocked. Her hands flew to her weapon...which wasn't there;Crescent Rose was gone! Ruby froze, helpless and watching: the bow creaked once.

"What are you doing?" Pyrrha asked.

"I… I was looking for Ruby," Cinder replied.

Then Cinder shot her in the chest.

Ruby listened to the choking sound of Pyrrha trying to breath past a lung filling with blood.

Her eyes flew open to the dark of her room, then screwed shut immediately. A nightmare… she was just having a nightmare. She was back home here in Patch, sleeping in her bed.

"What if someone had seen you?" Echoed a whispered hiss, and Ruby stiffened once more.

No response to the question, she wasn't sure who was asking or who was being asked.

"Wanting to help is fine, but you have to be careful." The quiet voice chided, and Ruby realized it was Jaune talking. "You can't be seen like this…"

Her floor squeaked gingerly as someone began to walk away: as Jaune began to walk away.

"Imagine if she'd woken up, you'd have scared her half to death!"

The door closed gently. Ruby waited several quick heartbeats, then sat up in bed. She wrapped herself tight with her blanket, wearily eyeing the closed door. After a while, she crawled out of bed, still cocooned, and tiptoed across the room. Her hand closed around the handle, but she didn't open it, instead leaning forward and resting her head on the door.

"Yeah Jaune," she whispered, "yeah, I think you would scare me."


End file.
